Wednesday, April 11, 2007

MSNBC Axes Imus

UPDATE: Don Imus lost his radio show as CBS Prez and CEO Leslie Moonves followed MSNBC's example. After suspending the radio host for two weeks, CBS gave in to the mounting calls for his dismissal. Later, last night Imus met with the Rutgers women's team in what was characterized as a productive meeting by the Rutgers coach.

Cf. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/04/12/national/main2675273.shtml and http://news.aol.com/entertainment/articles/_a/cbs-fires-don-imus-from-radio-show/20070411183809990001?ncid=NWS00010000000001.

MSNBC announced today that it will no longer carry its simulcast of shock jock Don Imus' radio program, "Imus in the Morning." The cantankerous curmudgeon has long been a favorite of the political, literary, and media left and ivied elite. However, his racist and sexist slur, "nappy-headed hos," against the second place Rutgers women's bball team gave him the comeuppance that the p.c. crowd and the aggrieved right desired. He, like Nixon, gave a sword to his enemies, and they with little fault plunged it into him with abandon. Ironically, Imus' ratings increased 39% over a year ago and threatened CNN's American Morning for second place in the cable morning news show. (Thus, Ted Turner's former network canned Soledad O'Brien and Miles O'Brien and replaced them with the delectable Kiran Chetry and her sidekick John Roberts.)

Cf. http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D8OEM9M81&show_article=1 and http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/03/AR2007040302298.html.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

It was only a matter of time...

Anonymous said...

JH, your title is appropriate.  Don Imus needs to literally be "axed" , i.e. violently chopped in half with all of his limbs amputated beforehand, televised live around the world.  Then all humanpeoplekind can see and know that from henceforth, no racist, sexist or homphobic remarks should ever be uttered by anyone ever, ever again!!!

This, of course, does not apply to the following:

  Hip hop and rap artistes, cable TV comedians, pornographers protected by the First Amendment, and many other assorted oppressed minorities who have every right to express their rage and self-righteous anger in the form of "street poetry".  

Anonymous said...

G, the First Amendment does need to be vigilantly protected. However, Imus is being canned by the marketplace not censorship. MSNBC, initially, gave him a suspension of two weeks but it gave him the boot only after the mass exodus of sponsors from the show. The troubling aspect is that the FCC is looking into the episode. While post facto governmental censure is not technically censorship, it's pretty close.

Anonymous said...

Money talks....

Anonymous said...

I guess the greenback talked to CBS, too. Who do they have now that they've lost Howard Stern (without the middle initial "K.") and Don Imus? Maybe, they can steal some Air America talent.

Anonymous said...

Maybe the can hire Snoop Dog, Ludacris, or Fiddy Cent...
Censors better be ready on the bleep button!

Anonymous said...

Have a Dr. Laura/Lil Kim morning show: no holds barred!